Chapter 633: Forging the Pupils

Inside the secret chamber.

Han Li's body trembled slightly, and then he found himself back in the real world.

As the crystal wall before him gradually dissipated, the Eye of Truth on the True Word Treasure Wheel slowly closed, and the Dao patterns on the wheel once again became dim and lusterless.

Han Li withdrew his hand seals, gathering up the True Word Treasure Wheel, the Vial of Time, and the漫天金沙 (boundless golden sand), a contemplative expression appearing on his face.

After a long moment, he raised his hand and wiped his face, and the "Dragon Five" mask emerged.

He formed a hand seal with both hands and then entered the Wuchang Alliance transaction, skillfully posting one task after another, seeking to purchase various materials for configuring the auxiliary medicinal liquid used to cultivate the Nine Nether Demon Pupils.

After posting, light shone on the middle and index fingers of his right hand, and a floral pattern emerged. A silver light shot out, opening a silver light gate about ten feet tall before him.

With a flicker of movement, he flashed through the gate and arrived directly outside the spirit medicine garden.

The spirit fields were now brimming with spiritual energy. Over a dozen giant ape puppets were still busy at work, and the newly opened fields had expanded considerably.

Han Li slowly walked along the ridges into the garden. He saw that the spirit herbs planted earlier had mostly adapted to the garden environment, except for a few naturally delicate ones whose leaves had turned somewhat yellow and appeared listless.

He summoned one of the giant ape puppets, took out a jade bottle, and handed it to the puppet, instructing it to drip one drop onto these yellowed spirit herbs every half month.

After giving his instructions, Han Li continued walking inward and arrived at the area where the Extreme Vision Grass was planted.

The Extreme Vision Grass planted here was all over ten thousand years old, already suitable for configuring the spirit liquid.

However, according to the "Nine Nether Demon Pupils" record, all the medicinal ingredients, including the Extreme Vision Grass, were better with greater age, and the auxiliary medicinal liquid brewed would be more potent.

Han Li took off the small green bottle from his chest, shook it slightly, then tilted the bottle mouth and poured it toward the Extreme Vision Grass.

A drop of emerald spirit liquid hung in the air, about to fall. Just as it was about to drop, Han Li flicked his finger from a distance, and the drop exploded with a bang into a fine mist of crystal water, evenly spraying onto seven or eight stalks of Extreme Vision Grass below.

Han Li silently watched the crystalline droplets, like morning dew, that covered the leaves of the Extreme Grass. After a moment of contemplation, he continued deeper into the medicine garden.

In a corner of the rear garden, there was a patch of purple-black spiritual field resembling a swamp. The Dao Soldier Mother Beans growing there had grown considerably larger, shrouded in a purple mist flickering with electric light, appearing somewhat indistinct.

However, upon examining the aura emanating from them, there was nothing unusual.

Going further into the inner garden, most of the spiritual fields there were newly opened. Although they had been irrigated with spiritual liquid and undergone maintenance and transformation, they still seemed somewhat empty since no spiritual herbs had been planted yet.

"Fellow Daoist Han, forgive me for speaking out of turn..." At that moment, a voice suddenly came over.

Han Li turned around and saw Mo Guang walking toward him along the spiritual medicine field.

"Fellow Daoist Mo Guang, please speak freely," Han Li said.

"Although the cave-heaven treasure can circulate heaven and earth spiritual energy, it is ultimately different from the true void of heaven and earth and has its limits. Once too many spiritual herbs are planted, exceeding the limit it can bear, the circulation of spiritual energy in the cave-heaven may fail to sustain, potentially leading to spiritual energy depletion and the withering of the cave-heaven," Mo Guang said.

"I have already considered this point. This time, I intend to add some restrictions to the cave-heaven," Han Li nodded and said.

"Fellow Daoist Han is always meticulous in his work; I was overthinking it," Mo Guang said with a smile.

"I am well aware of your good intentions, Fellow Daoist Mo Guang. Previously, I removed some baleful qi and collected it. I was planning to give it to you at the bamboo building later, but you came over first." With that, Han Li raised his hand and tossed something.

A black storage pouch arced through the air and landed in Mo Guang's hand.

"Then many thanks, Fellow Daoist Han." After a brief inspection, a hint of surprise appeared on Mo Guang's face, and he said.

"It's nothing. Let's return to the bamboo building first," Han Li waved his hand and said.

The two arrived at the pond in front of the Purple Bamboo Pavilion. Mo Guang said he needed to continue his cultivation and went back into the building first.

Han Li walked alone along the edge of the pond twice. At certain spots, he took out round stones engraved with talisman patterns and threw them into the water, occasionally causing ripples to spread.

After throwing all the array-anchoring talisman stones, he turned his wrist and took out a Green Bamboo Cloudswarm Sword. He began to meticulously carve on the ground around the pond. With each movement of the sword tip, ancient sword qi imbued with immortal spiritual power deeply penetrated the earth.

Before long, a massive and intricate talisman array pattern appeared around the pond.

Han Li let out a long breath of turbid air upon seeing this. He turned his wrist and put away the longsword. With a flash of light in his palm, a transparent crystal appeared. The immortal spiritual power contained within this stone was almost condensed into substance—it was clearly a high-grade middle-rank Immortal Origin Stone of excellent quality.

He clenched the crystal in his palm, furrowed his brows slightly, and a trace of reluctance flashed in his eyes.

But without hesitating for long, he straightened up, raised his hand, and tossed the middle-rank Immortal Origin Stone out.

It traced an arc through the air, fell with a "dong" sound beneath the purple-gold lotus, and then disappeared.

Immediately after, a sound of water boiling came from the pond. One after another, large bubbles emerged from beneath the purple-gold lotus, popping with a "gurgling" sound.

Thick purple mist rose from the bursting bubbles, filling the entire pond and even engulfing the purple bamboo arch bridge that spanned it.

Han Li felt an invisible gentle breeze rise from the center of the pond, sweeping in all directions. As it brushed past him, rich spiritual energy flowed over him, making him feel relaxed and happy.

After standing by the pond for a moment, Han Li's figure suddenly flickered and vanished from the spot.

Almost at the same time, his figure appeared at a corner edge of the cave heaven. He flipped his hand and took out a pre-refined formation plate, installed an ordinary Immortal Origin Stone on it, and buried it deep underground.

Then, his figure flickered repeatedly, appearing at various corners of the "Flower Branch" cave heaven, burying formation plates embedded with Immortal Origin Stones one after another.

When all the formation plates were in place, like a well-laid chess game, the entire cave heaven formation finally took shape.

A metallic humming sound, "Weng," rang out!

Within the entire cave heaven, lights lit up one after another. All the formation plates operated simultaneously, turning into beams of light shooting straight into the sky.

At the pond in the center of the Purple Bamboo Pavilion, the purple-gold lotus bloomed with radiance. At a spot adjacent to it, a flower bud the size of a fist suddenly emerged, flashed with golden light, and also blossomed.

"Sacrificing a middle-rank Immortal Origin Stone in exchange for a twin lotus blooming—Fellow Daoist Han truly has remarkable methods. At least for the next hundred years, there's no need to worry about insufficient spiritual energy in this cave heaven," Mó Guāng stood by the window on the second floor of the bamboo building, looking down at the scene in the pond, a slight smile curling at the corner of his mouth as he praised.

Han Li smiled faintly, ignoring Mó Guāng's words. In his heart, he was quite satisfied with the changes in spiritual energy within the "Flower Branch" cave heaven.

After about half a quarter of an hour, all unusual sounds in the cave heaven gradually disappeared.

After inspecting the cave heaven once more to check for any omissions, Han Li returned to the secret chamber.

Having lingered in the "Flower Branch" cave heaven for a long time, it was already late at night when he returned. A beam of bright moonlight fell through the round hole in the ceiling of the secret chamber, shining before him.

Han Li silently watched for a moment, then took the small dark green bottle from his chest and placed it under the moonlight.

……

Spring passed and winter came; the Carefree Cloud Valley experienced the changing seasons like the mortal world. Thirty-odd years slipped by in an instant, yet the valley remained as tranquil as ever.

During this time, Han Li had gradually acquired various materials for preparing auxiliary medicinal liquids from the Wuchang Alliance, planted them in his own spirit herb garden, and used the green liquid from the small bottle to hasten their ripening bit by bit.

Among them, the age of several main spirit herbs, including the Extreme Vision Grass, had, under the hastening effect of the green liquid, already reached a level far higher than required by the secret art, causing the spirit liquid he refined to be of a grade far exceeding the optimal condition mentioned in the secret art.

At this moment, he was sitting in the secret chamber, eyes closed, regulating his breath.

It was midnight; all the lamps in the chamber were extinguished, and the surroundings were pitch black, except for a cold beam of light as thick as an arm projecting down through the hole in the ceiling.

By the light of the moon, one could see that before Han Li was placed a white jade porcelain vase with a wide mouth and slender neck, containing some light purple crystalline liquid that reflected shimmering ripples.

Just then, Han Li suddenly opened his eyes wide, activating his Bright Spirit Eyes, and two brilliant blue lights shone in his pupils.

He formed hand seals with both hands, and a light flashed over his body. One after another, purple-gold scales emerged from his skin, and the vast immortal spiritual power within him continuously transformed into pitch-black demonic qi, flowing out through the gaps between the golden scales.

Han Li silently recited the secret art incantation of the Netherworld Demon Eyes, rapidly formed hand seals, and raised a finger to wipe toward the mouth of the porcelain vase on the ground.

A patch of light purple liquid flew out from the mouth of the vase, and as his finger slowly traced through the void, it was drawn and sprinkled into his eyes.

As the crystalline liquid flowed into his eyes, Han Li immediately felt an intense burning sensation. He instinctively wanted to close his eyes, but relying on his strong willpower, he held back.

Washing the eyes with the prepared medicinal liquid was the first step in cultivating the Netherworld Demon Eyes, and a very important one at that. Just like body tempering, it was used to lay the foundation for subsequent cultivation.

Han Li's eyes were wide open, and tears silently flowed from the corners of both eyes, carrying within them some turbid impurities that were ordinarily invisible, leaving faint white streaks on his cheeks.

After washing over and over again, the blue light in his eyes weakened somewhat, but they appeared clearer and brighter, while many fine blood vessels appeared at the edges of his eye sockets.

At this moment, his hands forming seals suddenly changed. He turned both hands upward, raised one finger each, and pointed them toward his eyes.